13 Killed, 24 Others Injured in Sudan’s Blue Nile State Clashes

October 17, 2022 (WAD AL MAHl) – Inter-communal violence that spread into Blue Nile State’s Ar Rusyaris locality left 13 people dead and over 24 injured, the U.N Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said.

“The situation is still tense and unpredictable,” it stated, amid unconfirmed reports that an estimated 1,200 people have been displaced due to inter-communal clashes.

Hausa were reportedly expelled from the area by the Aj Jabalaween tribe, OCHA said.

The inter-communal violence, according to OCHA, spread into Blue Nile’s Ar Rusyaris locality from Wad Al Mahi in July, renewed on 13 October in Dam town 6 (Village 6).

On October 13, two Hamaji people were reportedly killed near Dam Town 6 in Wad Al Mahi locality due to a dispute over land issues, according to OCHA’s latest briefing.

“This led to clashes between the Hausa community and other tribes in the Dam town areas (Dam towns 6 and 7) that lasted until 16 October,” it further noted.

State authorities reportedly imposed movement restrictions, and there is no movement between Ed Damazine and Wad Al Mahi despite the heavy deployment of security forces.

The area is currently inaccessible to humanitarians, although security forces have been deployed to defuse the situation, which is “tense” and “unpredictable”.

Inter-communal fighting between the Hausa and Hamaj tribes started in Wad Al Mahi locality in mid-July displacing about 64,800 people and leaving 149 people dead and 124 injured as of 6 October. Most affected people have reportedly taken refuge within Blue Nile State and in Sennar, White Nile, Aj Jazirah, Gedaref, Red Sea, and Khartoum states, according to the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) Displacement Tracking Matrix (DTM).

However, although leaders of the two communities signed a cessation of hostilities agreement in early August, renewed clashes have been reported in some locations in Ar Rusayris and Wad Al Mahi localities since September.

(ST)